Device for displacing the front portion of an air inlet of jet drives



United States Patent 72] Inventors Hans Jurgen Reiclre;

Herbert Schnabel, 0; Dieter Weinhauer, Bremen, Germany Nov. 26, 1968 Nov. 3, 1970 Vereinigte Flugteelinische Werke Gesellschatt mit beschrankter Haftung l'rueher Weser Flug zeugbau/Focke- Wulf/Helnkel-Flugzeugbau Bremen, Germany Nov. 27, 1967 Germany [2 l 1 Appl, N o. [22] Filed [45] Patented 73] Assignee [32] Priority [54 DEVICE FOR DISPLACING THE FRONT PORTION OF AN AIR INLET OF JET DRIVES 13 Claims, 8 Drawing Figs.

[52] U.S. Cl 137/15.l [51] Int. Cl F02r l/02 [50] Field ofSearch l37/l5.l, 15.2

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,938,334 5/1960 McLafferty 137/15.1 3,242,671 3/1966 Moorehead 137/1 5.1

Primary Examiner- Alan Cohan Attorney-- Walter Becker ABSTRACT: An apparatus for displacing the front section of a two-sectional air inlet for flying bodies, especially airplanes, in which a double acting cylinder-piston system, which may or may not be surrounded by a tube, is arranged laterally of said front section for displacing said front section, while the cylinder of said cylinder-piston system or the pipe surrounding same serves as guiding means for said from section.

Patented Nov. 3, 1970 Sheet 1 of 4 Inventors Adw: 7370 $4: K

Patented Nov. 3, 1970 Sheet p Z Git/fa. I

Patented Nov. 3, 1970 3,537,464-

Sheet 3 014 Fig.4

Patented Nov. 3, 1970 Sheet 1 014 DEVICE FOR DISPLACING THE FRONT. PORTION OF AN AIR INLET OF JET DRIVES The present invention relates to a device for displacing the front portion of an air inlet of jet driving mechanisms of flying bodies, especially aircraft, said device being displaced by means of a double-acting hydraulic cylinder piston system.

Airplanes are known which have laterally arranged thereon displaceable inlets which by means of a gap between the separable inlet parts permit the entry of a so-called secondary air flow to the driving mechanism. The displacement of one inlet part or inlet member with regard to the other inlet part or inlet member is effected by means of a hydraulic cylinder piston system which displaces the displaceable member along guiding means in the direction of the airplane nose. I

According to another heretofore known embodiment of devices of this type, the displacement of one inlet member relative to the other inlet member is likewise effected along predetermined guiding means which, however, are so designed that the inlet member to be moved is first lifted off that part which is connected to the airplane, thereupon is displaced in longitudinal direction, and subsequently is again deposited on the airplane.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improvement in the guiding means for the front inlet member.

It is a further object of this invention to provide guiding means for the front inlet member which are of a simple structure and will have short feeding lines for the pressure fluid of the hydraulic cylinder piston system.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will appear more clearly from the following specification in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view of a displaceable inlet pertaining to a driving mechanism, said inlet being arranged laterally on the fuselage;

FIG. 2 shows in section a view of the central guiding means, the double-acting cylinder piston system and the pipe jacketing said cylinder, the inlet gap being closed;

FIG. 3 illustrates the central guiding means, the double-acting cylinder piston system and the pipe jacketing the latter, but differs from FIG. 2 in that the intake of the pressure fluid into the cylinder is changed;

FIG. 4 shows the central guiding means, the double-acting cylinder piston system and the pipe jacketing the latter while the inlet gap is open;

FIG. 5 illustrates a special design of the adjustment of the double-acting cylinder piston system and the pipe jacketing the same;

FIG. 6 shows an embodiment according to FIG. 5 with the jacketing pipe omitted;

FIG. 7 represents a cross section through the inlet, said section being taken along the line VII-VII of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 8 represents a cross section through the inlet taken along the line VIII-VIII of FIG. 1.

The device according to the present invention for displacing the front member of an air inlet of jet driving mechanisms for the drive of flying bodies, especially airplanes, is characterized primarily in that the double-acting cylinder which, if desired, may be jacketed by a pipe is arranged laterally of the from member of the inlet while the cylinder itself and the pipe jacketing the same serve as guiding means for the front member of the inlet.

By taking advantage of the outside of the cylinder or the pipe surrounding said cylinder as guiding path for the front inlet member, a very short overall length will be obtained. If the cylinder is arranged in a recess or chamber of the fuselage, the width of the structure will be reduced correspondingly.

The cylinder or the pipe surrounding the same may be journaled at both ends on the fuselage while the piston rod is pivotally connected on a bracket at the front member of the inlet. The front member of the inlet may be provided with one single friction bearing by means of which the front member of the inlet is guided on the double-acting cylinder piston system or the pipe surrounding the same.

If a pipe in the 'form of a jacket is employed for the doubleacting cylinder piston system, the latter may at its front end face be equipped with a pivot which is journaled in the bushing of the jacketing pipe by means of a spherical bearing. The bushing is two-sectional and is provided with a pivot guided in a spherical bearing which for purposes of adjusting the cylinder by means of two oppositely rotatable eccentric cups, rests on the airplane fuselage.

The front feeding line for the pressure fluid of the cylinder may be arranged laterally on the jacketing pipe or may be arranged at the end face on the supporting pivot of the cylinder.

In addition to the central guiding means for the cylinder itself or the pipe jacketing the same, at both sides there may also be provided one sliding device each, for instance a sliding path with a sliding member serving as guiding means.

The bearing for the hydraulic cylinder piston system or the front bearing for the jacketing pipe is preferably designed as self-aligning antifriction bearing, and the front inlet member is statically determined by its guiding means.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, FIG. 1 shows a fuselage 1 having a divided laterally arranged inlet 2, 3 for the driving mechanism 4 so that the inlet part or inlet member 2 may be displaced in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the airplane relative to the rear inlet member 3 while a gap 5 is formed between the two inlet members 2, 3 for admitting secondary air. When displacing the front inlet member 2 from its rear position (FIG 1 heavy lines) to its front position (FIG. 1 dot-dash lines), the front inlet member 2 slides on an intermediate guiding means 7 mounted in a recess or chamber 6 on fuselage 1 and also slides on two additional guiding means 10, 11 by means of slide members of which only the slide members 12 and 29 are shown for the intermediate guiding means 7. The said guiding means 10 and 11 are likewise arranged in chambers 8, 9. In view of the magnitude of gap 5, the air inlet conditions can easily be adapted to the conditions of operation of the driving mechanism 4. The displacement of the front inlet member 2 is effected by a double-acting hydraulic cylinder piston system 13 which by means of a piston rod 14 and through the intervention of a bracket 15 is connected to the front inlet member 2.

According to the embodiment of FIGS. 1--4, the cylinder 13 is arranged in a jacketing pipe 16 serving as guiding means 7, and is braced against said pipe 16 unilaterally by means of a spherical adjustable bearing 17 whereby a deformation of the cylinder 13 by outer forces will be prevented. In view of this arrangement of cylinder 13 in the interior of the jacketing pipe 6 and thus within the interior of the guiding means 7, a very compact structure will be obtained. The jacketing pipe 16 is within the chamber 6 journaled at one end of said pipe 16 and is firmly encased at said end in a fuselage spar 18 whereas its other end rests by means of a spherical adjusting bearing 19 on another spar 20. Slidably mounted on the jacketing pipe 16 is a bearing 21 connected to the front inlet member 2 and forming a bearing cup acting as sliding member 12.

According to the embodiment of FIG. 5, the cylinder 13 is likewise surrounded by a jacketing pipe 16 but the cylinder 13 is in this instance journaled in the jacketing pipe 16. The front end face of the cylinder 13 has a pivot 22 which is surrounded by a spherical adjusting bearing 23, said bearing being held by a two-sectional bushing 24. The front portion of bushing 24 likewise comprises a stud 26 which is surrounded by a spherical adjusting bearing 25. This bearing 25 is supported by two rotatable eccentric cups 27, 28 the outer eccentric cup 28 of which is fitted into the fuselage spar 18. With this type of mounting the cylinder 13, the jacketing pipe 16 has its front end not supported by the fuselage spar 18 but by the bushing 24. In this embodiment, the sliding member 29 of the bearing bracket 21 may, in view of its crowned or spherical design, be displaceable relative to the bracket 21.

According to the embodiment of FIG. 6, the cylinder 13 is not surrounded by a jacket. Its outer surface serves as sliding path for the guiding means 7. The front journaling of the cylinder 13 is the same as the journaling of the front member of the two-sectional bushing 24 of FIG. 5. The rear end of the cylinder is by means of a spherical adjusting bearing 30 supported by the fuselage spar 20.

The inlet marginal areas near the guiding means 10, 11 are not shown in detail and may consist of guiding elements known per se. By arranging three guiding means 7, and Ill with centrally attacking hydraulic cylinder piston system 13 in the interior of the intermediate guiding means 7, the displaceable inlet member 2 is prevented from tilting, and an easy displacement will be assured. The piston 31 of the double-acting cylinder piston system 13 is in the embodiment of FIG. 2 acted upon by' fluid on one side by the conduit 32 through the adjusting bearing 17, and in the embodiment of FIGS. 3 and 4 is acted upon by fluid through a lateral connection 33 at least the inner end of which is flexible to take care of any movement of cylinder 13 relative to pipe or tube 16. On its other side, the piston 31 is in these three embodiments provided with a fluid medium under pressure by a lateral connection 34. According to the embodiment of FIGS. 5 and 6, the pressure fluid is fed through lateral connections not shown.

All mentioned spherical adjusting bearings 17, 19, 23, 26 and 30 comprise an inner cylindrical bearing cup which is ballshaped on the outside and is pivotally arranged in an outer bearing cup which is ball-shaped on the inside. The outside of the outer bearing cup is cylindrical so that it can be fitted into the bearing areas. In view of the ball-shaped design of the surfaces which engage each other and pertain to the inner and outer bearing cups, the inner surface will be able when the part held thereby assumes an inclined position, to pivot in the outer surface.

It is, of course, to be understood that the present invention is, by no means, limited to the particular showing in the drawings but also comprises modifications within the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. In combination with the hull of a flying body, especially airplane, equipped with a jet driving mechanism having associated therewith an air inlet body comprising a stationary section connected to said hull and a movable section substantially axially aligned with and movable relative to said stationary section, a control device supported by said hull and operable selectively to displace said movable section relative to said stationary section and comprising: reciprocable fluid operable means operatively connected to said movable section for selectively moving the same toward and away from said stationary section, hollow cylindrical means surrounding said fluid operable means, and guiding means connected to said movable section and engaging said hollow cylindrical means for guiding said movable section during its movement toward and away from said stationary section.

2. A control device according to claim 1, in which at least one end portion of said reciprocable fluid operable means is pivotally journaled.

' necting the free end of said piston rod to said movable section,

said piston being reciprocable in said cylinder.

4. A control device according to claim 1, which includes cylinder means having axially spaced fluid inlet and outlet means and having said reciprocable fluid operable means including a double-acting piston reciprocally mounted in said cylinder means and in which said hollow cylindrical means is formed by a tube surrounding said cylinder means with radial play and being supported by said hull.

5. A control device according to claim 4, in which said tube has one end portion pivotally supported by said hull.

6. A control device according to claim 4, in which said cylinder has one end portion pivotally journaled in said tube.

7. A control device according to claim 5, in which said tube has its other end portion pivotally supporting said cylinder 1 I I a 8. A control device according to claim 1, in which said guiding means includes a sliding bearing slidable on said hollow cylindrical means.

9. A control device according to claim 4, which includes bushing means arranged at one end portion of said tube, and spherical bearing means supported by said bushing means and supporting one end portion of said cylinder means, said bushing means having an extension, and eccentric sleeve means journaling said extension and being supported by said hull, said sleeve means being adjustable relative to each other for adjusting said cylinder means.

10. A control device according to claim 4, which includes spherical bearing means arranged in one end portion of said tube, and in which one end portion of said cylinder means is provided with an extension journaled in said spherical bearing means and comprising passage means forming one of said fluid inlet and outlet means.

11. A control device according to claim 1, which includes lateral guiding systems arranged on opposite sides of and substantially symmetrically with regard to the longitudinal plane of said guiding means but offset to said guiding means in the longitudinal direction thereof, said lateral guiding systems including guiding elements connected to said hull and also including sliding members connected to said movable section and in sliding engagement with said guiding elements.

12. A control device according to claim 9, which includes self-aligning bearing means interposed between said eccentric sleeve means and said extension.

13. A control device according to claim 3, which includes self-aligning bearing means stationarily mounted near and supporting that end portion of said cylinder which is remote from said free end of said connecting rod. 

